Test Drive: EX takes the Lamborghini Huracan for a spin

The sweet smell of excess exudes to immeasurable levels when you slide onto the leather seats in the jet-fighter-style cockpit of the simply sensational supercar that is the Lamborghini Huracán.

As with the company’s top-selling Gallardo, the replacement Huracán is named after a famed Spanish fighting bull. So pride is its mantra.

It is the car that fired up all the fantasies and opened the wallets at the Geneva Motor Show, the Swiss scene of its introduction in early March. And no wonder.

To walk around the vehicle, gaze at its awesome low profile and, with special permission, be allowed to sit in it was an advance on the treat about to be savoured by the 1,000 customers who had already agreed to fork out huge money to buy into sheer bliss.

So what do you get for your cash? A showstopper, that’s what. A world-beater to overshadow even the Ferrari 458 and McLaren’s 12C; both strong rivals but with bigger price tags. And just a fantasy to the lesser well-off, like me.

My rescuing privilege, and salvation from jealousy, is being an international motoring journalist; thus I was granted access to automotive dreamland.

I guarantee the rush to own one will become an even more frantic stampede when the car goes on sale later this year and word (and sight) gets around – especially as it will be Lambo’s most affordable car.

The Italian giants needed to hit the road with a sumptuous challenger to Ferrari and McLaren and they have not only managed to play catch-up, they have, to my mind, overtaken those two as the frontrunner in the supercar race.

The Huracán boasts a 602bhp 5.2-litre V10 engine that feeds all four wheels, giving it a 202mph (325kph) top speed and a standstill-to-62mph (100kph) performance of 3.2 seconds. Wow!

They don’t make it with a manual gear box, just a brand spanking new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission system that smooths it grand-prix-style to its flying pace, hitting 124mph in under ten seconds.

Worried about stopping its blinding speed? Don’t be. Carbon-fibre ceramic brakes do the job with immaculate efficiency and no judder.

The car is mid-engined for balletic balance and its weight has been kept down by the extensive use of carbon fibre without the loss of any stolid and safe feel.

I absolutely love the bizarre touch of the starter button. Situated on the central instrument stack, and hidden under a red flap cover, it looks like the firing mechanism for a ballistic missile.

If ever I was guilty of passing on useless information it’s here: the fuel consumption figure is said to be 19mpg. Sounds optimistic. But if you can afford to buy a Huracán, the last thing you’ll worry about is its thirst.